I navigated all diets from keto/carnivore (for a year!!!) then pro-metabolic and now GAPS. I went from normal weight and being fairly fit to being severely underweight on keto and now 20 lbs overweight after trying the pro-metabolic diet. In all of this, my IBS is back to how it was before only now in addition I'm not fit anymore and I'm overweight and I can't lose weight. I no longer know what is healthy and what is not. Fiber, yes or no? Vegetables, yes or no? Dairy yes or no? Everything is confusing, and I don't know what to eat anymore, and I don't know what to do. I know it's not a specific question, but do you have any advice for such a situation? I am desperate.
This problem is very close to home and an important although undiscussed danger many popular diets today.
Most diets, as admitted even by their proponents, are designed to treat serious health problems.
- Keto is for treating epilepsy
- carnivore works for people with (serious) digestive conditions like colitis
- GAPS is for autism
- etc etc
The problem with all the intensive and restrictive diets is that many people who fall for their marketing don’t actually have the serious health problems that they are meant to treat. So you have otherwise healthy people doing carnivore for example, utterly genociding their mostly-healthy gut microbiome in the process, coming out of it less healthy than before.
People are surprised at this, but think about it this way: if your knee was healthy, why would you get knee surgery? Obviously it’s not going to help your knee, and might make it worse. You’d only get knee surgery if you already had knee problems.
The solution to this? Don’t adopt a restrictive diet. You should seek to eat everything, so long as it’s actual food (eg seed oils and red 40 are not food). But if it’s real food, grown and produced well, something that your great-grandma may have cooked, chances are you’ll be fine.
I have a whole series called the decadent diet, which explains what to eat. It basically defines what “real food” is across the various categories.
May be easier said than done though, especially now that you have actual digestive problems.
The general guidelines id give are:
- try to eat everything, starting with the foods that are easiest for you to digest and expand slowly over time
- stick to “normal food”, meaning something that a normal person would not roll their eyes at (eg no coconut flour cookies, raw eyeballs, etc. you get the idea)
- eat 3 meals a day, no more no less
- don’t stuff yourself
- fix all sources of stress. Walk after meals, read before bed, etc. stress kills digestion
I may have to turn this into an article. Hope that helps!
Thank you so much for your answer. After subscribing, I jumped into the comment because I'm exhausted by this situation. I'm a young woman who is overweight now, and this generates a lot of stress. I like your "balanced" approach, and I'm glad I subscribed, and I will carefully read your articles and hopefully find some balance e reverse this situation. Thank you
Hello! Does microwaving destroy nutrients in food (compared to reheating in oven or cooktop)? What are your thoughts on using microwave oven on daily basis?
I haven't used a microwave in over 5 years, don't miss it one bit.
Aside from the fact that a toaster oven/stove is almost always better at warming things up, intensive radiation from microwaves denatures complex organic molecules and proteins, etc
Hello! I started using tallow balm over a month ago and was very excited to try it because of all the benefits. However, I’ve found it breaks me out and I normally have pretty clear skin. Do you know why this could be or do you have another natural moisturizer you recommend? I have tried two different brands, one being the van man company you recommend and they both break me out. I like using it as chapstick and for the rest of my body but my face just doesn’t seem to like it.
I’ve heard a few people say this, while others really like it. People’s skin is very variable so it could be that. Many balms also have essential oils which may be the actual cause of breaking out, so trying different ones couldn’t hurt.
The best alternative I would try would be coconut oil or ideally cocoa butter
I have the same thing!! Made a homemade one with manuka honey and I LOVE it on my lips and body but I finally had to admit that it was breaking my face out. Interesting to hear that this is common. I find that fresh, blended aloe and calendula cream works so well for me and clears my acne! I believe it has Vitamin A and C in it!
It’s worth mentioning also that jojoba oil is not particularly pufa heavy (mostly mono unsaturated) and might be a good choice too if your face has trouble w saturated fats
Interesting! I used to use jojoba and actually really liked the results but was worried about it making me more susceptible to sun damage, so thank you for the info!
Our family has successfully eliminated seed oils from our house, but we have really missed mayonnaise and have struggled to find a comparable replacement until recently when I made it from a Coconut Oil blend that is a 90% MCT Fractionated Coconut Oil so that it is in liquid form. I know that's not ideal but it tastes far better than the olive oil or avocado oil versions I have tried. Any thoughts on Fractionated Coconut Oil?
Fractionation is not actually that sketchy, although it might sound like it lol. If you tolerate it well then it sounds fine, not like it’s high pufa or anything
I have long thought that the best Mayo would be made with duck fat, which is usually liquid at room temp (or at least some of it will be liquid). Alas I have yet to try making it for myself
I navigated all diets from keto/carnivore (for a year!!!) then pro-metabolic and now GAPS. I went from normal weight and being fairly fit to being severely underweight on keto and now 20 lbs overweight after trying the pro-metabolic diet. In all of this, my IBS is back to how it was before only now in addition I'm not fit anymore and I'm overweight and I can't lose weight. I no longer know what is healthy and what is not. Fiber, yes or no? Vegetables, yes or no? Dairy yes or no? Everything is confusing, and I don't know what to eat anymore, and I don't know what to do. I know it's not a specific question, but do you have any advice for such a situation? I am desperate.
This problem is very close to home and an important although undiscussed danger many popular diets today.
Most diets, as admitted even by their proponents, are designed to treat serious health problems.
- Keto is for treating epilepsy
- carnivore works for people with (serious) digestive conditions like colitis
- GAPS is for autism
- etc etc
The problem with all the intensive and restrictive diets is that many people who fall for their marketing don’t actually have the serious health problems that they are meant to treat. So you have otherwise healthy people doing carnivore for example, utterly genociding their mostly-healthy gut microbiome in the process, coming out of it less healthy than before.
People are surprised at this, but think about it this way: if your knee was healthy, why would you get knee surgery? Obviously it’s not going to help your knee, and might make it worse. You’d only get knee surgery if you already had knee problems.
The solution to this? Don’t adopt a restrictive diet. You should seek to eat everything, so long as it’s actual food (eg seed oils and red 40 are not food). But if it’s real food, grown and produced well, something that your great-grandma may have cooked, chances are you’ll be fine.
I have a whole series called the decadent diet, which explains what to eat. It basically defines what “real food” is across the various categories.
May be easier said than done though, especially now that you have actual digestive problems.
The general guidelines id give are:
- try to eat everything, starting with the foods that are easiest for you to digest and expand slowly over time
- stick to “normal food”, meaning something that a normal person would not roll their eyes at (eg no coconut flour cookies, raw eyeballs, etc. you get the idea)
- eat 3 meals a day, no more no less
- don’t stuff yourself
- fix all sources of stress. Walk after meals, read before bed, etc. stress kills digestion
I may have to turn this into an article. Hope that helps!
Thank you so much for your answer. After subscribing, I jumped into the comment because I'm exhausted by this situation. I'm a young woman who is overweight now, and this generates a lot of stress. I like your "balanced" approach, and I'm glad I subscribed, and I will carefully read your articles and hopefully find some balance e reverse this situation. Thank you
Glad you find it helpful, sounds like you’ll get a lot of value from reading through the archives here.
Also would recommend following my fiancée @theoliveoilqueen on Instagram, her content is specifically tailored to women
“Everything is confusing, and I don’t know what to eat anymore” is so incredibly relatable.
Hello! Does microwaving destroy nutrients in food (compared to reheating in oven or cooktop)? What are your thoughts on using microwave oven on daily basis?
I haven't used a microwave in over 5 years, don't miss it one bit.
Aside from the fact that a toaster oven/stove is almost always better at warming things up, intensive radiation from microwaves denatures complex organic molecules and proteins, etc
Just dead food
Hello! I started using tallow balm over a month ago and was very excited to try it because of all the benefits. However, I’ve found it breaks me out and I normally have pretty clear skin. Do you know why this could be or do you have another natural moisturizer you recommend? I have tried two different brands, one being the van man company you recommend and they both break me out. I like using it as chapstick and for the rest of my body but my face just doesn’t seem to like it.
I’ve heard a few people say this, while others really like it. People’s skin is very variable so it could be that. Many balms also have essential oils which may be the actual cause of breaking out, so trying different ones couldn’t hurt.
The best alternative I would try would be coconut oil or ideally cocoa butter
Great, thank you so much!
I have the same thing!! Made a homemade one with manuka honey and I LOVE it on my lips and body but I finally had to admit that it was breaking my face out. Interesting to hear that this is common. I find that fresh, blended aloe and calendula cream works so well for me and clears my acne! I believe it has Vitamin A and C in it!
It’s worth mentioning also that jojoba oil is not particularly pufa heavy (mostly mono unsaturated) and might be a good choice too if your face has trouble w saturated fats
Interesting! I used to use jojoba and actually really liked the results but was worried about it making me more susceptible to sun damage, so thank you for the info!
Hi Tan Man. Do you prefer lard or tallow for cooking and why?
Honestly butter for cooking most things, tallow only for super high heat or frying.
I generally avoid lard bc healthy pigs are v rare and therefore hard to find good lard
Thanks. I buy my lard from Dutch Meadows in Lancaster County. Their hog herd is woodland and unvaxxed.
Good to know!
Our family has successfully eliminated seed oils from our house, but we have really missed mayonnaise and have struggled to find a comparable replacement until recently when I made it from a Coconut Oil blend that is a 90% MCT Fractionated Coconut Oil so that it is in liquid form. I know that's not ideal but it tastes far better than the olive oil or avocado oil versions I have tried. Any thoughts on Fractionated Coconut Oil?
Fractionation is not actually that sketchy, although it might sound like it lol. If you tolerate it well then it sounds fine, not like it’s high pufa or anything
I have long thought that the best Mayo would be made with duck fat, which is usually liquid at room temp (or at least some of it will be liquid). Alas I have yet to try making it for myself
How to reverse the signs of aging?
Assuming you mean wrinkly skin and gray hair, so I’ll stick to that
- tallow balm on your skin
- eat vitamin A
- red light therapy
- saunas
- eat moneta rich foods in general, copper-rich in particular (liver and red meat)
- avoid seed oils
- work on your posture with a bio-mechanics focused fitness approach (eg functional patterns)
I would always prefer wearing a hat / white linen over sunscreen, which should be good for most occasions
But if for some reason that is impractical then the ingredients in that one sound reasonable enough to me